The present invention relates to apparatus for testing water meters. More particularly, the instant invention relates to apparatus for testing water meters in the field and in the shop wherein the apparatus utilizes digital readouts.
Water meters are used by water utility companies to measure the amount of water consumed by customers and are the means by which a utility generates revenue to cover its expenses. Unfortunately, considerable income is lost each year due to inaccurate water meters. Thus, water meter preventive maintenance programs are of considerable value. While the primary purpose of such programs is to enable a water utility to realize maximum income from its commercial and industrial meters, there are many other benefits, including lower operating costs, reduced expenditures for new facilities, equitable distribution of cost to produce clean water, and conservation of water resources.
By maintaining meters at peak efficiency, a water utility encourages its customers to conserve water and to eliminate leaks. Over the years, many meters become inaccurate and almost always register less water than is actually consumed. When a neglected meter is finally repaired, there is often a dramatic increase in a customer's water bill, which frequently causes a customer to take the steps necessary to maintain his or her water consumption at a minimum.
Encouraging conservation of water offsets the impact of growing populations by reducing the rate at which water is consumed, in turn minimizing expenditures for increased system capacity. Moreover, encouraging conservation immediately reduces normal operating costs by reducing expenditures for treatment chemicals, power consumption, and maintenance of pumps and treatment plants, as well as avoiding the need for larger systems.
Considering a specific example, assume a water rate of $0.50/1000 gallons. A commercial customer, such as a fast food restaurant or laundromat, might have a water bill of $2,000 per quarter or $8,000 per year. The registered utilization of water of 16,000,000 gallons per year results in an $8,000 annual water bill. If the meter registers only 80 percent of the actual water used, the bill would only be $10,000 per year, and the service has lost $2,000 on a meter that was registering only 80 percent of the actual water use. Ten such accounts would add up to $20,000 per year; and, with a 100 percent sewer charge, the loss doubles to $40,000 per year. The magnitude of this problem is apparent when one considers that many meters are operating at accuracy levels of 40-60 percent.
In order to operate an effective meter maintenance program, the utility must know when a meter is malfunctioning. At present, the only way to determine system failure is with a test water meter. The current practice is to utilize a mechanical test meter in conjunction with a stopwatch. This approach requires skilled, experienced personnel, yet the accuracy of the test is still suspect. The test requires considerable time to complete, and there is no assurance that the field personnel responsible for conducting the test have actually performed it.
The industry has realized that mechanical test meters are not only likely to be inherently inaccurate, but also have the aforementioned drawbacks. Accordingly, at least one company claims to have developed an electronic mobile meter. This meter is very expensive and is not readily separable from the vehicle which transports it. To date, the instant inventors are unaware of any commercialization of this mobile meter.
For the foregoing reasons, there is a need for a simple, accurate test meter which can be successfully operated by personnel with minimal skills and experience so as to facilitate meter maintenance and achieve the advantages which flow therefrom.